Life Through the Looking Glass
by Kitsura E
Summary: Friendship goes a long way and if the bonds are made properly, they are never broken. Kuroko and the others may have gone on their own separate paths, but they were a team before and friends first and foremost. Despite their tension with each other now, they'll still pull through for each other. And the story all starts at Teiko...Series of one shots about the GoM and Kuroko.
1. Snip

**Disclaimer: **I claim no ownership of the manga/anime nor the cover.

**Summary: **Series of one shots about the lives of the GoM and Kuroko.  
_**AU**_ - The GoM and Kuroko became a complete team in their first year, and not their second year.  
Haizaki was part of the team until halfway through their first year when Kise joined.  
Their family backgrounds are also not canon as neither the manga/anime divulged any information. Therefore, many events that may occur will be through speculation and analysis.  
Akashi may or may not be nicer than he is portrayed in the manga.

* * *

**Genres: **Humor/General

**Time: **About halfway through their first year.

**Chapter Warnings: **implied underhanded tricks, happy Akashi, crude language (this chapter will also be the introduction and basis for my story, hence the lengthy opening)

* * *

Teiko Middle School.

Though it was considered a top-notch school in terms of academics and sports, it wasn't any different from any of the other competitive Japanese schools out there. However, if one were to research Teiko Middle School to discover if it had anything special about it, one name would pop up again and again from their search: the Generation of Miracles.

The pride and joy of this prestigious school, the Generation of Miracles was made up of a group of five genius basketball players with a rumored phantom sixth player. By the time these middle schoolers finished half of their first year of middle school, the entire school population along with the faculty had known their names and faces (except for the phantom sixth player).

Atsushi Murasakibara, the center.

Kise Ryota, the small forward.

Aomine Daiki, the power forward.

Midorima Shintaro, the shooting guard and vice captain.

The rumored phantom sixth man, Kuroko Tetsuya, the passing and stealing specialist.

But out of all these names, one of them stood out the most.

Akashi Seijuro. The Point Guard and Captain of the esteemed Teiko Middle School basketball club.

The students knew never to mess with the owner of the name - even the upperclassmen. The teachers knew to always work at their best if he happened to be in the class they were teaching - Akashi did not like incompetent teachers. The bullies - well you don't really want to know what happened to them.

And if there was a new student? Well, they learned their lesson quickly enough when they mistook him for an elementary student.

But it was the members of said esteemed basketball club that were the most wary of Akashi and for good reason. With his piercing, scarlet eyes and deceivingly kind smile (which turned into a smirk on many occasions), a stranger would be nervous around him. His training regimes were no joke either. Ask any member and they would claim that each regime was a gift from the devil.

One thing that kept the members most on their guard, especially the regulars, were Akashi's beloved red scissors. Polished to perfection and engraved with his name, they were useful for many purposes including scarring lazy or disobedient members for life. God forbid if you were both.

Akashi was very scissor-happy and had no qualms about throwing sharp objects. It didn't help anyone's nerves to know that he was very precise and accurate. Whoever said people should always hold scissors by the end probably never met Akashi.

It was a well-known fact that only the regulars of the basketball club were able to be around Akashi for what was considered an unhealthy amount of time without adverse effects other than bruised egos or losing a few strands of hair. It wasn't a surprise that the regulars were considered insane, especially with what some of them decided to do when Akashi was occupied with the student council meeting.

* * *

_BANG! _

Many people's heads snapped towards the gym doors when it slammed open, but upon seeing who was at the doors, they all went back to practice. "GoM business was GoM business"was one of the unofficial rules of the club if you wanted to retain your sanity.

"Shit! I can't believe we actually managed to get it."

"Shh. Not so loud Aominecchi!"

Kuroko glanced towards the voices from where he was dribbling a basketball, "Ah, hello, Aomine-kun, Kise-kun."

Kise and Aomine paused in their argument when they heard the monotone voice. With a broad grin, Kise pounced at his favorite (and only instructor) to wrap him in a crushing bear hug, "Kurokocchi!" only to meet thin air. He landed painfully on the gym floor.

"So meeeaan!"

Ignoring the blubbering mess behind him, Kuroko turned slightly curious eyes towards his partner, "Did something happen?" By this time the trio had attracted the others' attention and Kuroko could see Midorima and Momoi making their way over. The former, probably to bring things back to order, and the latter probably to greet Kuroko.

Aomine glanced around warily before leaning down and whispering conspiratorially. Kuroko almost expected him to say, "I got the goods," but what came out wasn't far from what he expected.

"Kise and I managed to nab Akashi's scissors." Aomine pulled a familiar pair of red scissors out of his pocket.

Midorima and Momoi who arrived at that exact moment froze as still as statues. An eerie silence fell over the group that the entire gym seemed to feel if their stiff movements were anything to go by. Even the ever arrogant Haizaki was silenced.

Kuroko dropped the basketball he held in his hands and it rolled away ominously, "...We're all going to die."

"Ahomine, you idiot!" Momoi was the first one to snap into action as she slapped the back of Aomine's head. "What on earth possessed you to steal - mmph!" With horror, Kise slapped his hand over Momoi's mouth.

"Ah - don't yell it out loud, or we really will die!" Momoi gave him the evil eye and he slowly backed off with a nervous chuckle.

"And here I though you two had more sense than that...Oha-sa had warned me that a stupid person would lead me into danger today...though I have to wonder how you two blockheads managed to steal _it_..." Midorima muttered as he clutched his lucky item of the day, a stuffed fox, in his hands like a safety blanket.

"Shut up! It was for our safety! Besides, we've actually planned this for weeks and it takes genius (he ignored the "or stupidity" from Momoi) to pull off something like that."Aomine snapped back as he rubbed the back of his head. Once again, the entire group was silenced, except for Kise.

"Yeah! Aren't you guys tired of having scissors thrown at you like kunais? I lost more of my hair in one day than I did in one week..." Kise whined pitifully as he trailed off into a mutter.

"That was mostly you two, not us."

Aomine and Kise stiffened. "As blunt as ever Tetsu," Aomine muttered, "...but at least we won't have scissors thrown at us anymore." Aomine and Kise had grins plastered over their faces like accomplices in crime.

Meanwhile, the others had an unnerving feeling of doom creeping down their spines. They couldn't help but feel as if those were famous last words.

**"Good evening." **Everyone paled at the voice and Aomine hurriedly stuck the scissors back in his pocket. Everyone stopped what they were doing to turn towards the gym doors. Murasakibara and Akashi stood framed in the doorway with Murasakibara munching chips like usual, but it was Akashi that had them on edge.

He had a smile on his face - _a really wide smile_, complete with closed eyes and a happy aura. _  
_

"Well? What are you all doing? Get back to practice."

"H-hai!" The non-regulars hurriedly went back to what they were doing with renewed vigor and energy.

Meanwhile, Kuroko and the others nervously watched as Murasakibara and Akashi made their way over to them.

"Good evening, Akashi-kun, Murasakibara-kun." Kuroko greeted when they arrived. The others seemed too busy having a mental breakdown to answer, not that Kuroko felt any better, but someone had to keep up appearances. "Akashi-kun seems unusually happy today."

Akashi turned his smile at Kuroko and for once, he was glad that he normally had an expressionless face, otherwise he'd be a blob of fear.

"Ah, is that so? I actually seemed to have misplaced my scissors somewhere," the others tried their best not to look at Kise or Aomine,"but I have actually discovered a most delightful thing to replace it for now. Atushi helped me acquire it."

So that was where Murasakibara went.

Midorima nearly dropped his stuffed fox at those terrifying words. "T-then, what did you find?" He was almost too terrified to ask, not that he'd admit it. Morbidly, he wondered if curiosity did kill the cat.

"Ah, I'm glad you asked. Give it here, Atsushi." Murasakibara obligingly held out his hand as the others paled.

Midorima's glasses slipped down his nose as he stared, wide-eyed, "And I suppose him throwing _that _would be better...!?" he whispered. Akashi rose his eyebrow inquisitively, but if his grin was anything to go by, he knew _exactly _what Midorima was talking about.

"Oh my god, are those gardening shears!?" Momoi shrieked. Her words had everyone in the room sweating buckets and the non-regulars were stuck on whether they should practice harder or run veeery far away.

"G-Gar-." Kise couldn't even finish his sentence.

Akashi merely smiled,"The gardener was kind enough to let me borrow it until I have found my scissors."

_Snip. Snip. _

"We _are_ going to die."

"_Tetsu! That's not helping!" _

* * *

**A/N: **This is my first time dabbling in the KnB fandom, but I have fallen in love with the anime/manga enough that I feel the desire to write something for it. At the request of my friend, I have decided to start a series of one shots (since that's probably the only thing I can write and complete within a reasonable amount of time). I just hope I do the series justice.

Depending on the reviews, I'll see when I should update, but don't expect fast updates...I'm pretty terrible at updating, but I'll try...^^  
I'll also accept requests as long as they're not rated M, unreasonable, or romance (I want this series to focus more on friendship, but if it's implied or a misunderstanding, that's another thing). If I don't get to yours, please don't be offended.


	2. 5 Times Invisible

**Disclaimer: **Nope. I don't even own the quotes I used from the manga.

* * *

**Chapter Summary: **The five times Kuroko Tetsuya was invisible and the one time he wasn't.

**Genres: **Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, Humor

**Time: **Throughout Kuroko's life.

**Chapter Warnings: **OCs used for support (#1, 2, 3, 4), crude language (#4, 5), borderline sadistic humiliation of people who deserve it (#4)

* * *

**A/N: **This one is most definitely more serious than my first one shot, but I hope you guys enjoy it nevertheless. It includes the GoM, but is mainly Kuroko-centric.

* * *

_"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye." _

_Antoine de Saint-Exupery, The Little Prince _

* * *

**1. Perspectives **

"Ne, ne, kaa-san, can I have that for my birthday?" A child's voice, bright with happiness and innocence. Pleading eyes looked up at his mother as he tugged on her hand. The two were in the shopping district and in front of them was a large toy shop. The young boy was currently pointing at a sleek, model airplane on display behind the glass window.

The woman looked to where her son was eagerly pointing. A smile, loving and tender, was directed back at the young boy, "Of course, dear," and the two walked into the shop with the boy bouncing with cheer all the way.

At the sound of the door's bell, an old, but kindly-looking man poked his head out from behind the storeroom door, "Ah, welcome. Is there anything I can help you with?" he greeted with a warm smile.

The mother greeted him back with slight bow before replying,"Yes, how much does the airplane on display cost?"

The man stepped out from behind the door and gave the airplane a speculative glance. "You have a good eye miss. That is actually one of our newest models - it's one of the most realistic ones yet, and is very popular with children these days," he gave her an apologetic smile,"I'm afraid it's a little expensive though. It's 2700 yen."

"Really?!"The boy shouted, then slapped his hands over his mouth. He blushed in embarrassment when the two adults gave him startled stares. "Sorry..." he whispered through his hands before grabbing one of his mother's hands,"It's okay, kaa-san, we can just buy the cake."

The boy visibly drooped with disappointment, but started when two warm hands clasped onto his cheeks. He looked up to see a pair of warm, brown eyes looking back at him,"Do you really want the airplane?" A hesitant nod. "Do you promise to take really good care of it?" This time the nod she received in return was much more adamant.

"Yes! I promise not to drop it, or lose it, or break it, or play tug-o-war with it - it's not my fault I ripped Yu-chan's teddy bear...Paku has sharp teeth! -" The boy rambled on until he ran out of things to say and was panting with effort.

A short silence before the old man roared with laughter."Well, you'll certainly take much more care of it than the other kids will."

The mother let out a small laugh before taking out her wallet and handing the man 2700 yen. He carefully took the money and counted it before giving back 700 yen to the startled woman,"Just a little secret between us two adults, eh?" He gave a wink,"I'm the owner of this shop, so there's no problem. Besides, it's this kid's birthday right? I heard you two from outside."

A pair of bewildered eyes stared back at him, "T-thank you, jii-san!"He gave a low bow. The woman gratefully thanked the man when he returned from the storeroom with the same airplane, this one already in its box and in a bag.

A few minutes later, the two walked out of the store with the mother affectionately ruffling the child's hair,"You're six now. My little boy is growing up. One day, you'll be too old to play with model airplanes and hang out with your kaa-san."

The boy adamantly denied doing such a thing until he walked into someone and landed on his rear end. Another thud sounded. Apparently, the other person had gotten knocked down too. Startled, he shook his hair out of his eyes and glanced up to see a pair of bewildered blue eyes looking right back at him. He was almost too shocked to notice his mother pulling him and the other kid up.

The other boy had pale skin and the bluest eyes he had ever seen, almost like the sky on a sunny day. He also had sky-blue hair and was a few inches shorter than he was. Belatedly, he realized that he had also never seen such a quiet kid even though he was probably around his age. He squinted at the other boy. With his bright and expressive eyes and mussed up hair, he kind of reminded him of his adorable little sister. Already did he feel a kinship with the other boy even though he had just met him.

Swiftly forgetting the pain he felt from falling down at the prospect of making a new friend, he broke into a wide smile,"Sorry for knocking you over. I didn't see you there. My name is Yukimura Kai. This is my kaa-san."

The other boy blinked at him before sinking into a low bow,"No, it was my fault. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going. Sorry for disturbing you and your mother." He stood up straight again "And my name is Kuroko Tetsuya, nice to meet you two." Kuroko's grandparents had always taught him to be polite to anyone he met.

Kai decided that Kuroko was the politest kid he had ever met too.

"Excuse me." Kuroko was about leave when the woman spoke up.

"Aren't you a little too young to be walking around by yourself? Where are your parents?" Kuroko turned to face the woman who was now looking at him with concerned eyes.

"I...think they're back at home. It's my brother's ninth birthday today so they're probably celebrating right now."

The mother gave him an incredulous look while the son gave him an astonished look. "Cool! It's my birthday today too!"

"Oh, happy birthday."

But the mother wasn't deterred,"Shouldn't you be with your family then?"

Kuroko shook his head,"They forgot to pick me up from school." At the horrified look he received, he elaborated,"It's okay, this happens a lot." Strangely, she grew even more horrified.

"That's really irresponsible of them."

Kuroko was a little perturbed. He didn't understand why the lady was acting so angry. For as long as he's remembered, his parents had usually paid more attention to his older brother. He didn't know why, but his parents sometimes tended to forget he was there, but that wasn't new either. Usually, he'd either just speak up or go to his grandparents house if they forgot him somewhere.

And they usually apologized for forgetting him anyway. It wasn't that strange to him though...his brother was the more gifted out of the two. He was only in 4th grade and already he was one of the most popular students in the school. Handsome, smart, and charismatic - it was a no-brainer why. His grades and athletic ability did nothing but increase his popularity. On the other hand, though Kuroko did get above average grades, he was quiet most of the time and did nothing to stand out. A teacher had once said he was 'like a phantom' once when he had scared the living daylights out of her by appearing out of nowhere, but he didn't think he was. He had looked in the mirror right after that comment and seen his reflection.

Besides, his parents were busy people. His father was the CEO of a well-known modeling agency and his mother was a famous actress. It made sense that they would focus more of their attention on his older brother when they had the time to. He told the woman this, but all he got in response was a disappointed shake of the head.

"Some people these days don't deserve to be called parents..."

Kuroko was now very disconcerted and a little annoyed.

"Do you want to call home?" The woman rummaged through her purse and was about to had him her cell phone when Kuroko softly spoke up.

"It's okay. I was just heading to my grandparents' house." Before the two could do anything, Kuroko hastily bowed before running off. Hey, at least he said said goodbye properly, even though he was taught not to run away from people when doing so.

Kai gave a strange glance at the direction in which the boy had run off before looking at his mother who looked sad all of a sudden. "Kaa-san?"

She sighed,"It's nothing, son." She glanced back again, but there was no sign of the boy,"Let's head to that bakery now, okay?" The sun was already starting to set; pretty soon, the shops would close up if they didn't hurry. They walked in silence for a few seconds before the mother spoke up in an emphatic voice.

"I'll always love you, Kai. If you need me, I'll always be here, okay?" Kai blinked up at his mother when she grabbed his hand and squeezed it. He didn't understand why she was being so mushy all of a sudden. The last time she did that was when his grandfather had 'moved on'. He had a feeling it had to do with that Kuroko kid.

"Hai." He smiled back.

Kuroko glanced around the corner as the two walked away. For some reason, seeing the two made something in his chest hurt a lot, especially when the mother held her son close. He remembered very few times when his parents were that affectionate with him, and he never really thought about it before. But when the lady had shown him concern, it brought up all the doubts he had deep down. He...kind of wished that his family was like the mother and son. That his family would give him the same attention they gave his brother. That his parents hadn't forgotten his birthday a few months ago, and that they had gotten something for his birthday.

Suddenly, he really wanted to see his grandparents; they never forgot him. He still kept the stuffed dog he got from them in his closet so that it wouldn't get dirty or thrown out by accident. With them, he always felt wanted and loved.

Later, when Kai's birthday bash finally finished and he was laying snugly in his bed with a his presents nearby, he had another thought. Though Kuroko was the quietest and politest person he had ever met, he thought he was also the loneliest.

**KnB**

**2. Library  
**

During break, Kuroko would usually go to the library. Ever since he discovered the place in 1st grade, it had become a haven for him of sorts. While other kids his age would be playing tag, jumping off swing sets, or jump rope, he preferred to spend his time reading literature. Preferably something related to the supernatural, mystery, adventure, or fantasy.

By the time he got to 3rd grade, he swore he had read through half the books in the library, if not more. He had learned quite a few new things; sometimes, when he got bored, he would read up on subjects he had trouble with such as Math, or English. Unsurprisingly, he had gotten much better at those subjects in a short period of time much to the astonishment of his teachers.

It wasn't as if he was a loner or a nerd or anything like that. He just had more fun experiencing other people's adventures rather than injuring himself trying to climb the jungle gym. In his opinion, it was a much safer way to experience an adventure, until he got older at least. Besides, when he was burying himself in one of Harry's adventures, the characters wouldn't lose track of him in a game of tag and accidentally run into him or something. He had gotten enough bruises from that.

It was on such a day that he decided to go to the library. A few of his classmates had invited him to play Hide and Seek and he had agreed. After several games, everyone had given up on trying to find Kuroko after he had won every game. He even won when he was 'it'. The game they had decided to play after that was dodge ball, but Kuroko had respectfully declined despite his classmates' protests. He didn't want to end up tripping someone by accident when they ran around. Or get hit by the ball.

So, his next stop was the library.

He had lost track of time when he was reading _Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes. _So focused on the story he was that he didn't notice when break had ended.

He didn't notice when, a few minutes later, the librarian had glanced at the time, only to jerk with shock and begin hastily packing. Today was a half-day and she had a date with her boyfriend right after school ended.

It was only when Kuroko heard the tell-tale click of a lock did he glance up at the door in confusion. He didn't know whether to sigh with exasperation or groan and bang his head against the desk. The librarian had locked him in the room.

In his defense, he was sitting right in front of her, but she must have been so rushed that she hadn't bothered to look around the room to see if anyone else was there. That wasn't the problem now though. Kuroko ran to door and jiggled the doorknob in an attempt to open the door. Not surprisingly, it didn't budge.

He glanced one the wall - _12:15 P.M -_ and sighed. His brother was probably already waiting impatiently outside, but thankfully he had his cell phone on him at all times. He liked to be prepared for things, even though this wasn't on his list of things to be prepared for.

_Click. __"Where are you?" _A slightly annoyed voice spoke up from the other end.

"...I'm locked in the library."

**KnB**

**3. Encounter**

"Yo, Kuroko, want to head to the arcade with us after school?"

Kuroko glanced up from his bento to see the grinning face of one of his classmates: Hajima Raidou, a dark-haired teen who was known as the class clown. He was a Namichi Shou Gakkou 3rd year, like Kuroko. Seeing the slight hesitation, Hajima elaborated, "You look lonely being by yourself all the time. Live life once in a while,"and slung an companionable arm around Kuroko's shoulder. "I promise we won't be doing anything illegal."

Kuroko sent him a blank stare, which Hajima returned with a blinding smile. The two had an impromptu staring contest, but Kuroko could tell that Hajima wouldn't give up if his constant smile was anything to go by. He sighed quietly in defeat.

"Okay." It wasn't like he was planning on doing anything anyway.

As soon as the bell rung, Hajima grabbed Kuroko's arm as soon as he was finished packing up before he could decide to change his mind. Weaving through the crowd of students, the two met up with two others outside the school gate.

"Oh? Kuroko's coming with us today?" Abaji Kasuya, one of Hajima's friend questioned with astonishment. "I'm surprised you actually got him to agree."

Hajima grinned, "I didn't think he'd actually agree either."

Kuroko was slightly miffed. Did he seem that antisocial? "Please don't talk as if I'm not here."

Hajima and his friends let out a friendly laugh. Abaji clapped Kuroko's back, "Sorry, didn't mean to be mean or anything. You're just so quiet all the time, we rarely see you talk to anyone."

Kuroko supposed that was true. "Thank you for having me today." He gave a slight bow.

"O-oi, no need to be so formal. We're all friends here." Wakata Yuu, the last of Hajima's friends nervously replied.

That had Kuroko giving them a deadpan stare. Friends...? He hadn't really talked with any of them much other than what was needed or during class projects. The most interaction he ever had with them was during their Spring Festival, where they had set up a Haunted House. Before he could voice his thoughts, Hajima interrupted.

"Come on, the sun's going to set at this rate. What are you guys, old ladies?" That earned him a slap in the back of the head from Abaji.

The three laughed, but Kuroko couldn't help but stare at them. He hadn't ever been that close to anyone before because of his lack of presence which made him pretty unnoticeable...but he decided this wasn't a bad change.

"You coming Kuroko? We're going to leave you behind if you don't hurry up!"Hajima yelled several feet away.

Oops. Kuroko was so lost in his thought he hadn't noticed that the three were already heading towards the arcade. He had to stop doing that.

"Yes."

As soon as they had arrived at the arcade, Hajima had challenged him to a popular shooting game. He wasn't quite sure what you were supposed to do as he had never gone to an arcade before, but he assumed you were supposed to shoot the people that appeared on screen, which, he somehow excelled at ("Wow, Kuroko, you have pretty good aim."). DDR, however, was another story ("Uwah...I guess that's what people mean by two left feet." "...Hajima-kun, you're laughing too much.")

It was several hours before they finally left the arcade and the four had nearly wasted all their pocket change on the games. By the time they left, the sun was already starting to set and a cold chill was starting to seep into the air, unsurprisingly since it was already December. In attempt to escape the chill, they headed over to a nearby Okonomiyaki restaurant.

"Man, that was awesome. I don't think I had that much fun in ages. We should hang out more often." Hajima crowed happily, bouncing around excitedly. Wakata and Abaji were too tired from running around the arcade to reply; plus, they were hungry.

"If you still have that much energy left, go order us some food..." Wakata grumbled as he sunk into a seat.

Hajima huffed,"Fine." He hailed a passing waiter as he sat down.

Kuroko sat stiffly in one of the chairs, thinking quietly. Despite his uncertainty about going at first, he didn't regret his decision. Funnily enough, he agreewd with Hajima. It was one of the best days of his life. He hadn't had that much fun in ages and it was nice being able to hang out with people his age without worrying about how he should act.

His parents always emphasized that it was important to have connections; that was why they always brought him with them to their socials when they remembered to so that he could make friends with the children of businessmen and socialites. It wasn't a fun experience, but at least they were starting to do it less and less. Recently, they had realized that he had too little of a presence to be noticeable to the children of the upper class so they usually brought Kuroko's brother with them instead.

"Oi, Kuroko, what are you thinking so deeply about? It looks as if you're trying to unravel the meaning of life." Hajima joked as he waved his chopsticks around, "Your okonomiyaki is going to get burned."

Wakata and Abaji paused in shoveling food into their mouths to give him an appraising stare. Kuroko stared back at them, "I was wondering...but why did you invite me to 'hang out' today?"

The three gave each other confused glances. Then Abaji replied,"Why? I think Wakata said it earlier, but we're friends aren't we?"A blank stare was what he got in reply so he continued,"I mean, you did help me with English a few times. And you helped me find my lost dog a few weeks ago. I also lent you my literature book once when you forgot yours. I think that qualifies us as friends."

"You also worked with me on that science project once. I would have been a goner if you hadn't explained the importance of minerals...I _still _think they're just rocks."Wakata added. "You also pointed out that I had a 'I'm a pervert' sticky note on my back that one time. Man that would have been embarrassing if you hadn't said anything...I still need to get that guy back," he grumbled.

"Ah! And don't forget the time the four of us had to pretend to be ghosts for that Haunted House theme Ayuzawa-kaichou came up with. Man, if it wasn't for you, Kuroko, we'd have her breathing down our necks for weeks ranting to us about what terrible ghosts we are. It was really funny how no one noticed you until they were right in front of you though," Hajima also added to the conversation with a grin.

Kuroko gazed back at them in bemusement with a slight furrow in his eyebrows. He did remember doing all of those things, but wasn't he just being nice or doing what was expected of him? Sure, he could have just ignored them when they needed help, but it wasn't in his nature to do something like that. A softly spoken statement cut through his thoughts.

"You've never had friends before did you, Kuroko?" Kuroko started with shock. He was about to reply that of course he had, then thought about it more carefully. He had acquaintances who were the children of his parents' friends. He knew some of his brother's friends. He did have companions, but none he would feel comfortable being around for a long time unlike these three.

"No...I don't think so." He turned away. The three pairs of beseeching eyes he received in return were a little too much. "I've always had a lack of presence so people didn't notice me much."

"Well, you're not always invisible." Kuroko snapped his head back at them with faint surprise. Abaji elaborated on Hajima's statement.

"I mean, in the beginning, sure you were a little unnoticeable, but you aren't always invisible. You have as much presence as the rest of us. Well, after we can find you."

Wakata spoke up,"I think it's actually pretty cool. Who knows, maybe you can use that 'invisibility' of yours as a skill or something one day."

"Yeah, it's not often that we meet someone like you. What was that saying, treasure every encounter? You never know who you can end up being friends with."

Kuroko wasn't quite sure how to respond. It was the first time anyone ever said anything that meaningful or kind to him and it gave him a warm, fuzzy feeling, sort of like petting a puppy on the head. He kind of wanted to cry, but that wasn't a manly thing to do. Instead he gave the three a small, but warm smile, and said,"Thank you." The smile was small and barely noticeable, but to the other three, it was as shocking as much as it was blinding.

"Woah, Kuroko can smile?!" And the blank expression was back. Wakata and Abaji sighed as one.

"Ah, Hajima, the mood-killer."

"O-oi, that's mean!"

"Hajima-kun, Abaji-kun, Wakata-kun, your okonomiyaki are burning."

"What! NOO, my special, deluxe okonomiyaki!" Hastily, he flipped his okonomiyaki but ended up spraying hot oil everywhere.

"Hajima! You idiot!"

Kuroko let a small smile cross his face as Wakata wrestled Hajima into a choke hold while Abaji roared encouragements across the table.

_**OoOoO**_

The four hung out several more times as the year went by. Eventually, the four ended up calling each other by their first names, though Kuroko continued to call them by their last names despite their protests. However, when their graduation ceremony arrived in March, they realized that they were all heading to different schools. Abaji was even heading to Kyoto. When the last day of school arrived, they all decided to hang out at the arcade where they first became friends. They exchanged phone numbers and swore that they would keep in contact, though it would be hard as they were all heading to faraway schools and were trying to achieve their own dreams.

It was late in the afternoon a few weeks before school was due to begin again when Kuroko's phone let out a jingle. Squinting at the stormy sky, Kuroko quickened his pace as he pulled his phone of of his sweater's pocket, but paused when he saw the message. He let a sad smile cross his face before he continued on his way.

* * *

**18:21  
****Hajima Raidou  
No Subject **

_Treasure every encounter, Tetsuya-kun. You never know who you will become friends with. Let's meet again one day. _

* * *

It was the last time Kuroko heard from them.

**KnB**

**4. Bullied**

_"I'm glad I was called one of the Generation of Miracles, but, in other words, that just means I was the weakest of the bunch...that's why Kurokocchi and I were picked on quite often. Right?" ^_^_

_"I wasn't particularly picked on. Actually, could you please stop making up things?" -_-_

_"What!? I was the only one!?" T-T_

Well, it wasn't like the bullies dared to mess with the rest of the Generation of Miracles. Even they weren't that stupid. The bullies usually went after Kise because he didn't fight back and preferred to go with 'violence is not the answer'. Usually his attempts to placate any bullies ended up pissing them off even more.

The rest weren't like that.

Murasakibara was scary in his own right. Even though he spent most of his time munching on snacks and acting childish when off-court, he towered over nearly everyone he met. His intimidating stare also didn't help even though he didn't do it on purpose. _  
_

Midorima...he scared off most bullies with his glinting glasses and horoscope predictions. Fortunately enough, or unfortunately, depending on the point of view, any jealous students trying to harm Midorima often found him when he had an...unusual...lucky item. Unusual, being a pocket knife, authentic looking chainsaw, or water gun (that looked like a real gun).

Aomine was one of the few of the Generation of Miracles that bullies dared to mess with. Before they saw him play basketball. Or if they didn't, he usually won all his fights with them. You didn't become the ace of the GoM without having good reflexes or natural instincts. Also, people wouldn't think so, but Aomine also loved to prank anyone that got on his bad side, especially if he was bored.

Momoi is a seemingly innocent and harmless girl, until you know what she can do. Surprisingly, she's very good with aikido and very accurate with her kicks, especially down there. If that didn't deter bullies, the thought of having Aomine personally hunting down anyone who dared to even touch his childhood friend did.

Akashi. You just don't mess with Akashi. The _very few _students who did always immediately transferred schools _if __they were fast enough_.

Kuroko, on the other hand, seemed to be the perfect target for a bully. He was soft spoken, polite, smaller than other guys, and seemingly weak. Someone jealous of the GoM or just an average bully would not hesitate to hurt Kuroko.

There were four problems though.

* * *

1) Aomine would go 'ballistic' on them. Literally.

* * *

_The third year grabbed onto Kuroko's collar and yanked him up until the two were eye-level. The bulky, blond teen glared heatedly at Kuroko's blank expression. _

_"You fucking think you're better than the rest of us now that you're in the first string don't you?" _

_Kuroko gave him a leveled stare, "I don't."  
_

_The third year growled and pulled back his fist to land a solid punch against Kuroko's face. He landed harshly against the pavement and Kuroko gave a slight wince when he immediately felt the stinging pain blossom across his face. With a slight glare, he watched as the third year laughed. _

_"Don't feel so high and mighty now do yo-." _

_"Oi, Tetsu, sorry I-." _

_Aomine's smile froze on his face as he stepped around the corner with his basketball in one hand and his messenger bag in the other. The third year turned to stare at Aomine with horror; he had heard the rumors of what Aomine supposedly did to anyone that messed with his friends. _

_Meanwhile, Aomine was piecing together the scene in his head. A third year was standing smugly over his best friend. His best friend was sprawled on the ground with blood dripping from his mouth and a new bruise starting to form on his cheek. Ah, and he just winced with pain. _

_Aomine's smile morphed into a dark grin. "Who's the lucky bastard this time?" _

_The third year's scream was cut off when a basketball slammed into his face at full strength. _

* * *

2) Momoi would make them cry. And not with happiness.

* * *

_"Tch, I don't see what's so great about that Kuroko guy." The dark-haired second year had beaten Kuroko up before stuffing him into a locker yesterday, but he had barely put up a fight. He was annoyed that Kuroko hadn't even said anything, but just stayed silent as if _he_ was the victim. _

_He was startled out of his thoughts at the sudden silence that occurred when he stepped through Teiko's gate. A feeling of uneasiness crept down his spine as the whispers started, but he ignored them as he headed towards the front doors, but two of his classmates stopped him and gave him strange looks. _

_"Oi...Yukita...is it true that you once wore your sister's underwear?" _

_Yukita spluttered,"W-what? That was an accident!" Silence. "Actually...h-how...did you know that?"  
_

_The two seemed to be the 'okay' for the rest of the school to bombard him with comments. _

_"Hey Yukita-san, did you really barf in your teacher's drink?"_

_"Oi, Yukita, I didn't know you watched Sailor Moon." _

_"Wow, I can't believe you actually cheated on three girls at once." _

_Yukita reddened and opened his mouth in a silent scream as more people began to surround him. What the hell? How did everyone know his deepest and darkest secrets!? What did he do to piss someone off...wait..._

_"Kuroko, you bastard!" Yukita shouted. The crowd was immediately silenced, but a voice spoke up.  
_

_"You might not want to continue with that train of thought." A cold, but feminine voice sounded.  
_

_His head snapped towards the side to see a buxom, pink-haired girl starting coolly at him. He recognized her. _

_"Y-you're." She was one of the girls who flirted with him daily. What the hell was going on?_

_"You picked the wrong person to mess with as soon as you touched my Tetsu-kun." _

_...What? The crowd seemed to have a better understanding of what was going on.  
_

_"Ah...poor guy...no wonder..." _

_"Momoi-san did it again." _

_"I think that's the fourth guy this month." _

_Yukita had pretty much turned into stone when a paper was shoved into his face. He blinked at it before paling. It was a list of all his secrets - _with pictures included.

_He stared at Momoi with horror as a deceivingly innocent smile spread across her face. _

_"This is posted all across the school. Maybe that will teach you not to bully others." Her smile widened. "By the way, is it true that you..."she whispered into his ear and Yukita stiffened before bursting through the crowd screaming with tears streaming down his face.  
_

_It was the last time anyone saw him. _

* * *

3) The rest of the Generation of Miracles would **scar them for life. **

* * *

_Kuroko was walking towards the gym when two teens stepped into his path. He glanced up with exasperation mixed with pity. Honestly, he was starting to get more concerned about _their _well-being rather than his. He had talked with Momoi and Aomine about how they dealt with bullies, but that didn't mean they wouldn't make sure that anyone who hurt Kuroko would be repaid in kind - tenfold - in other ways. _

_One of them glared at him and snarled,"You. Get on the court. We'll settle who deserves the starting position with basketball." _

_Kuroko stared at the dark-haired teen that talked. "I'm sorry, but I don't think that will work out. I'm not that kind of player." _

_The other teen narrowed his eyes. "Are you mocking us?"_

_Before Kuroko could reply, someone else spoke up, "Oha-Asa mentioned that today will be a good day to go on a walk." _

_Kuroko turned to see Midorima walking casually towards them, his glasses glinting ominously in the overcast sky. _

_"Hello, Midorima-kun."_

_"Akashi wanted me to find you. He has something to discuss with you." Kuroko raised an eyebrow. Really? _

_"Oi, this isn't related to you. Get out of our business!" The teen who had first spoken took a menacing step forward. _

_Midorima turned towards them, the item in his hand coming into full view. The two blanched and even Kuroko backed away. It was a pretty realistic looking head with an arrow through the temple. It even had the glassy eyes and slack-jawed mouth to match. If Kuroko didn't know any better, he would've thought that Midorima had just murdered someone, not that the other two teens knew. __They had run away before Midorima could even speak._

_ Kuroko glanced uneasily at the head. "Midorima-kun...is that your lucky item of the day?"_

_"No. The lucky item today for Cancer is a glass eye, but the lucky item for Aquarius is an arrow." Midorima pushed up his glasses awkwardly at Kuroko's slight smile. "It was a 2 in 1 deal."_

_**OoOoO**  
_

_Kuroko glanced at the raven-haired first year, then at Murasakibara in confusion. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do in this kind of situation. _

_"Kuroko, you bastard, you think that -"_

_"Ne, Kuro-chin, I found this new flavor in -"_

_"I was the best basketball player-"_

_"You like vanilla right? I saw -"_

_"And how the hell did you get Momoi-san to like you, you don't -"_

_"You should try some."_

_Murasakibara was holding out a strange vanilla mix candy when the raven-haired first year finally had enough - "Oi! I'm trying to talk here!" - and slapped the candy out of his hand. _

_Kuroko facepalmed._

_**"I'm going to crush you."**_

_**OoOoO**_

_"Ne, Kurokocchi, can you believe what my manager did today?" Kise whined to Kuroko about his modeling life as the two headed towards the gym for practice. He continued to ramble on until someone stopped them.  
_

_"Kise. I want to have a talk with you." Kise and Kuroko narrowed their eyes at the punkish-looking first year. They knew that tone. _

_"Sorry, but we have somewhere to be right now." Kuroko did not want to have another incident on his hands. He wondered when the bullies would learn their lesson, and it wasn't even the end of the first year yet. Kuroko grabbed Kise's hand and was about to leave when the punk pulled out a knife and brandished it in front of their faces. Kise and Kuroko froze. This was the first time something like this happened. Briefly, Kuroko wondered what girl's boyfriend Kise pissed off this time. _

_"Hey,"he growled lowly under his breath,"I'm not done talking." Kise frowned. He did not like where this was going. Sure, he didn't like to get into fights, but it was an entirely different matter when someone else was involved, especially if it was Kurokocchi. _

_Then, he had an idea, as an evil grin spread across his face and his eyes sharpened. "Hey, I have something to say to you to." _

_The punk turned his glare towards Kise. "I never told anyone about the time I walked into my manager's room to find..."  
_

_Before Kise even finished talking the punk had already paled and fainted with a nosebleed. Fortunately, Kuroko was not one to get affected by those things, though he thought that his brain had died a little when he heard the third 'pillow' and 'chain'. Kise just went back to his oblivious persona as he pulled Kuroko after him. He didn't seem willing to function at the moment._

**_OoOoO_**

_"Kuroko!"Kuroko nearly flinched when he heard the yell from across the courtyard. He was heading towards the library early in the morning to return some books. Reluctantly, he turned to see an unshaven, scraggly third year head in his direction with a seething glare on his face. However, he was halted before he could even take a few steps. _

_"Are you Momosaki Yuushi?" _

_Both Kuroko and Momosaki jumped before staring at the cop in bewilderment. He had appeared out of nowhere. Kuroko was kind of impressed.  
_

_"...Yes." The police officer frowned as if he had just swallowed a piece of grapefruit.  
_

_"I am afraid that you are under arrest for assault and battery of a minor."  
_

_Momosaki spluttered,"W-what?! I didn't even do anything yet!"  
_

_The police officer ignored him as he snapped his handcuffs around Momosaki's wrist. "Hey! Don't I count as a minor too?!"  
_

_Kuroko numbly held the books in his hands as he stared after the duo as they left the courtyard with Momosaki still screaming his head off. A heavy and awkward silence hung in the air before a voice broke it. _

_"Ah, Tetsuya, there you are." Kuroko raised his eyebrows as his captain walked out from behind a corner.  
_

_"Akashi-kun." Kuroko greeted. Akashi scanned his surroundings as if looking for someone before nodding in satisfaction.  
_

_"I suppose that everything went well, then."  
_

_Kuroko blinked owlishly back at Akashi before slumping in defeat. He gave up. There was no way he was going to convince the others to finally let him deal with the bullies by himself if Akashi had gotten involved. _

_...however..._

_"Assault and battery...really, Akashi-kun?" That did explain all the suspicious _incidents_ in the past few months. _

* * *

4) The biggest problem though was that the bullies usually can't find him.

* * *

_"Where did he go?" _

**KnB**_  
_

**5. Reunion **

"I'll have twenty cheeseburgers, with no pickles and tomatoes, but extra cheese." Kagami paused. "Please."

The woman behind the counter didn't even bat an eye, but merely nodded her head. "Thank you, will that be all?" No one at Maji Burger gave him a second glance anymore after the first few weeks he stopped by, except for the new customers. They were all used to his black hole of a stomach; thankfully he got a discount for all he ordered.

"Could I also get water?" Ever since he almost choked several times because of a certain person, Kagami started ordering a cup of water with his cheeseburgers. She nodded again.

A few seconds passed as the lady gave a bored glance at the screen of the cashier before stating in a monotone voice,"That will be 1800 yen."

Ten minutes later, Kagami was walking towards his usual table with his mountain of hamburgers and a cup of water placed precariously in the corner. Slumping heavily onto his chair, he wasted no time in hungrily snatching one of the cheeseburgers off the mountain and unwrapping it. With relish, he took a large bite off one end -

"You're out quite late today."

- and promptly choked. Sending a watery glare at the blue-haired teen across the table, he reached for his cup of water and chugged half of it down before coughing harshly. What the hell? Even though he was prepared for something like this to happen _again, _he didn't actually expect Kuroko to be there. It _was _pretty late, probably 11:00 P.M. already, and it was pitch black outside save for the street lamps. The only reason Kagami was outside in the first place was because he lost track of time practicing basketball in the street courts.

"That's my line!" Kagami snapped back with a vein popping in his forehead. He seethed for a moment longer before simmering down. "I was shooting some hoops. What are you doing out so late?"

Kagami gave Kuroko a speculative look that the other returned with a blank gaze. Kuroko was as silent as usual and wasn't acting strangely or anything, but for some reason Kagami thought that he gave off a distinct feeling of..._offness. _If he hadn't known Kuroko as well as he did, he would've dismissed it, but there was definitely something wrong here. He could tell by the faintly furrowed eyebrows and the slight tightening of his lips.

"I didn't want to go home."

Kagami blinked. Of all the responses he expected to receive, he didn't expect that one. The way he said home sounded really strange too, as if he was talking about a prison. Briefly, he wondered if he should change the subject or be tactful...ah, screw it. That wasn't him.

"Why not?"

Kuroko tore his eyes away from Kagami's piercing gaze and turned to face the window as he took a sip of his vanilla milkshake. He stared at the brightly lit street and watched as a few late night straggler crossed by as he tried to organize his thoughts. Kuroko was quiet for so long that Kagami was about to call it a lost cause and go back to eating his burgers when Kuroko spoke up.

"My brother is returning from overseas for a visit." Kagami thanked his lucky stars that he didn't decide to start eating again. He would bet his autographed basketball that he would have spit it out.

_"You have a brother!?" _Kagami screamed. The few customers that were in the store gave him dirty looks and Kuroko twitched with surprise, then winced. The yell was pretty loud. **  
**

"Please lower your voice Kagami-kun, you'll bother other people." It was too late for that. Kagami spluttered before falling back against his chair with a huff. He crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow at Kuroko.

"Oi, you can't blame me for being shocked. How come you didn't tell anyone? Actually, I thought you said you didn't have one." Kagami hadn't noticed it earlier in his shock, but Kuroko was definitely showing some uneasiness now.

Kuroko's eyes darkened as he turned back to the window. He remained silent for a moment before speaking softly, "I don't...or more exactly..._he _doesn't. You can't really call someone a brother when they don't acknowledge themselves as one. He and I don't have a particularly good relationship. Especially after _that _incident. As far as he concerned, he is an only child and I do not exist."

By now, Kagami was a mixture of pissed off and confused. What kind of brother was that? Even when Tatsuya had tried to break their brotherhood, he had never treated Kagami like trash and even in the end they had made up. Kagami snuck a glance at Kuroko who had trailed off into silence and was shocked at what he saw. Never before did he see Kuroko so...what was the word...melancholy? No, it was something more than that, like a mixture of regret sadness and anger. Kagami frowned. Sure, he had sometimes wished that Kuroko showed emotions more often, but not like that. There was something else that was bothering him though...

"What about your parents?" Kuroko blinked rapidly as if broken out of a trance before giving Kagami a wide-eyed kind of look.

"My parents...? What about them?"

How to phrase this without pissing of the phantom sixth man..."Well...don't your parents care about, I don't know, what's going on?"

"I...don't know. I haven't seen them in quite a few months. I don't live with them." What...? "I live with my grandparents."

What the fuck was up with this situation?

"Then why now?" Jeez, Kagami was glad that Kuroko was opening up to him and all, but emotional situations were not his forte. He was half worried that he'd do something stupid, which according to Coach, he did quite often and have Kuroko Ignite Pass him in the face or something. Besides, in his opinion, this situation was all kinds of fucked up.

Kuroko returned to his apathetic persona. He tilted his head in thought. "I'm not so sure myself. Sudden family reunion? They usually don't bother since half the time they don't notice I'm there or not." He gave a half-hearted reply.

A few beats of silence passed by and Kagami stared at his cold burgers for a moment before looking up. "Do you get tired of being unnoticed sometimes?" he blurted.

For the first time in a long time, Kuroko was struck speechless with shock. It took him a few minutes to gather his thoughts. "Sometimes...though lately, it hasn't bothered me as much. I don't think I'm that invisible. The GoM were one of the first people to acknowledge me. I have to admit that the team is getting better at finding me and they have never forgotten me. Nigou definitely knows I'm here. And...and Kagami-kun can see me." Kuroko gave him a small, but warm smile which Kagami blushed at.

"You always say such embarrassing things so easily." Kagami replied gruffly as he dug back into his burgers. He might as well salvage them while they were still at least somewhat warm.

"Do I?" Kuroko, for his part looked honestly confused which had Kagami grumbling at him with annoyance. Then, the comfortable atmosphere was suddenly shattered by the sound of a ringing phone. Kuroko frowned as he saw the caller ID on the screen. It was his mother. He was debating or not whether to pick up when Kagami reached across the table and ended the call. He ignored Kuroko's bewildered stare.

"Idiot, you don't want to meet them right? So don't force yourself to do something you don't want to do."

Kuroko frowned, "If my parents are calling me, then they will probably head over to my grandparents' house if I don't choose to come there by myself."

Kagami finished his ninth hamburger before swallowing. "Then sleep over at my place tonight. I have a few extra rooms for guests. If Alex hasn't occupied one of them already," he muttered. "Besides," he added at Kuroko's hesitant look, "if that guy doesn't acknowledge you as his brother, it's his loss. You may be annoying half the time, and I swear, you're slowly shortening my life span by scaring the shit out of me, but other than that, I think you make a perfectly good brother."

Kuroko froze and stared at Kagami. He couldn't help it. It was the first time someone said something like that to him and if he was a poetic person, he might have said that he felt as if the sun had just risen over the mountains on a winter morning. A warm and refreshing feeling. It was a feeling that he was feeling more and more often with his team - both of his teams. People were slowly starting to notice him more and sneak past the defenses he put up, but he couldn't say it was a bad thing. In fact, he couldn't have asked for more.

Kuroko's mouth involuntarily twitched into a warm and genuine smile. "Thank you, Kagami-kun."

Kagami hunched over his last two cheeseburgers. "S'nothing." He mumbled. Secretly, he thought that Kuroko should smile more. He looked happier that way.

* * *

**And the one time Kuroko Tetsuya was not invisible to anyone...**

* * *

**Christmas**

_To be continued in the next chapter_

* * *

**A/N**: This monster is the biggest chapter I have written out of all my stories...I hope that you guys enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it...

Also, about requests, I might not get to all of them since I won't write anything that I don't think will work out, or where I will probably write the prompt horribly.

Any criticisms, thoughts, or opinions would be much appreciated. ^^

I have a question to ask though: **Ho****w interested are you guys in reading a story, with an actual plot, using some of the background I use in this story?** It will be about Haizaki getting his revenge on the GoM through Kuroko. It will include the GoM and some of the more prominent characters, such as the Seirin team, Takao, and Kasamatsu, but will be Aomine and Kuroko-centric. It's in its planning stage for now, but I'm interested to know how many of you would want to read it. One of its genres will be definitely be Drama though so expect lots and lots of suspense, feels, and cliffhangers. Especially the feels and cliffhangers.


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